CLINICAL AUDIT: AN INTRODUCTION

Clinical Audit: An Introduction

Chockalingam S

Senior Consultant, Orthopedics, Kauvery Hospitals, Trichy

Background

What is clinical audit and how is different from research?
Why should I know about clinical audit and why should I do?
How to? The key steps to start and do.
Areas of clinical audit
A review of our findings in the context of the published literature

Definition

According to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, a clinical audit is defined as a

A quality improvement process that seeks to improve patient care and outcomes through systematic review of care against explicit criteria and the implementation of change.

Research is concerned with discovering the right thing to do; audit with ensuring that it is done right.

Clinical audits are publishable. Clinical Audits can lead to research

This is a Journal devoted to Clinical Audits

Steps in Clinical Audit

Audit of resources (physiotherapy services)

Audit of process of care (peri-op pain audit)

Audit of outcome (in fracture neck of femur)

83% lived
17% died
7 died 1 month p op.
5 died within 1 month p op.
4 died within 1 wk p op.
1 died < 24 hrs p op. (ASA IV)

Good audits that I was involved with

Good clinical audits that I know or was involved in:
Septic Arthritis audit and study Ortho and Paediatric department at the Kauvery Hospital, cantonment (then KMC speciality hospitals).
Distal radial fractures outcome after surgery Dr Tilman Stasch.Pain audit KMC Speciality – Sister Delphine
Satisfaction after total knee replacements – Dr Krishna Kumar
Transfusion audit in fracture neck of femur surgery patients – Dr Prathap
Outcome of club feet treatment at Kauvery Cantonment – Dr Kalaivanan

Completing the audit cycle

Deliberate the five questions

Summary

You just did our clinical audit workshop
You now have to do your own clinical audit

Dr. S. Chockalingam

Senior Consultant – Orthopaedic Surgeon

CLINICAL AUDIT: AN INTRODUCTION